What good is it going to do? And two important questions.

First of all, does anyone else feel the urge to go to bed at 7:30 pm with daylight savings? I am pretty sure we were all done for the day much earlier than usual over here. This daylight savings (both of them) thing sure takes it out of us ha.

My mom came over yesterday afternoon to hang out and visit for some time and then she told me to go out on a date with Andrew.

She has missed having Brooke around as much as she used to be (when I was single I was pretty much at her house 5 times a week ha). She wanted us to celebrate our 4 month anniversary.

We made our way to our first date location for some food.

The part I look forward to is that bread and honey butter. Oh and the baked potato.

I’m not going to lie… on our first date here I was positive Andrew was different and I was crossing every finger and toe that he would ask me out again.

We stopped by Costco really quick to pick up something (it wasn’t there though… this might have been the first time either of us left this store empty handed) and Andrew was thrilled that all of the Christmas stuff was out in the store. He has rules that we will have a real tree and that it goes up no earlier than the day after Thanksgiving (because he loves celebrating Thanksgiving… we can’t interrupt that). Exciting time of year.

Then we picked up Brooke. I am positive. This is my favorite stage. Her little sense of humor is so much fun… she gets me laughing pretty hard.

Also, she has gotten really good at drawing Beretta (she practices every day):

Brooke thought it was pretty funny that she gave Andrew a cape with her blanket.

Something I’ve really been thinking about a lot on my runs is the question, what good is it going to do? I’ve definitely had times where I struggled (I’m sure a lot of you can relate) over the years of running where negative thoughts flood my mind during a run. They don’t happen all of the time but there were periods when negative thoughts were more frequent than others.

Whether it is about comparing myself to faster days, doubting myself for future races or thinking that I’m not good enough… they’ve been there. I strongly believe that a lot of times it is really hard for us to avoid the negative thoughts that pop into our minds but from there we have the decision to keep thinking that way or switch our thoughts. I look back over the negative/hard on myself thoughts that I’ve had and chose to dwell on but then I think—> What good have any of those thoughts done for me? All they do is hold me back and keep me from enjoying the run. Those negative thoughts about our running and/our abilities are doing the opposite of what we are hoping for—> progress with our running.

Next time any of those negative thoughts come into our brains while we are out on a run… join with me and ask WHAT GOOD IS THIS GOING TO DO? Nada.

But, what good will the positive thoughts (or even neutral ones) about ourselves and our running do for our performance? A whole lot. If anything it will give us a pep in our step and help us to enjoy the miles a whole lot more.

Paying attention to the thoughts rolling around in our brain can help us to train our thought process and can make a huge difference in where we go with our running. My best races have always included myself being my own biggest cheerleader… and the not so great races have always included some of those negative thoughts.

We can’t control the weather, or the hills, or getting sick for race day, but we can absolutely control our thoughts.

Let’s experiment with it on our next run and see what positive thoughts do for our running vs negative ones!

(PS this is one of those topics that is pretty obvious but it is something I love to remind myself of)

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77 comments

Tree is always real, the smell is what Christmas is all about and in Florida you really need that ;)

Plus we can’t really put it up before Thanksgiving because it would be brown before the dinner was over so after Thanksgiving for sure.

I never, ever take my rings off. Ever. Ever.

First date, fishing. It’s our first love and we still go all the time, any time we can. it helps that we have a boat, live in Florida and on the water but even if we didn’t we’d find a way. It’s the common thing that ties us. Find that bond and you’ll always have that one thing that keeps you grounded.

I like that perspective of questioning what good those negative thoughts are going to do. I think that can (and should) definitely be applied to other areas of life outside of running, as well. A lot of times, it’s easy to think we’re not “enough,” which isn’t true at all.

I have the Charlie Brown Christmas tree, and I don’t really have a set time I put it out. I’m moving the weekend after Thanksgiving, so I’ll probably just wait until I get in my new apartment to put it out. I’m hoping some day I’ll have an actual tree that I can decorate with someone, but for now, the Charlie Brown tree works.

I’m the exact opposite of you- I’m terrified of losing my ring so I always take it off when I’m at home or working out. I have a special location for it so I always know to put it there as soon as I’m home. I’m planning on getting a silicon band so that when I’m working out people can still tell I’m a taken woman :)

Our first “date” was at the Penn State Creamery..although it might not be a date because I insisted on paying for myself. I was pretty sure that he just liked me as a friend so I ordered first and paid for myself so it wouldn’t be awkward..he was kind of upset after that!

I wear my ring when I run and pretty much all the time–I do take it off when I swim though because I’m so scared of it falling off in the water. On my 16th birthday my mom got me a Sweet 16 necklace that I somehow lost that day in school. It must have come off at some point and by time I noticed, I couldn’t find it. That was sad. :( I love having a real tree; that’s what we always had growing up. It’s sometimes a pain to get it, keep it watered, and dispose of it, but I think it’s worth it. It feels much more like Christmas with a real tree in the house. :)

Christine Stahley

Sometimes I where my rings, other times I do not. Thankfully I’ve never lost them!

Christmas decor goes up that day after Thanksgiving – I love how warm and cozy it makes our home feel! Sometimes we do a real tree, sometimes we don’t, it depends how motivated I am to water a tree that year and deal with pine needles, haha.

First date with my husband was at a brewery. I insisted on paying because I didn’t want him to think I was only going out with him for a free meal. But then the next day I told everyone he let me pay and how that wasn’t very nice, hahaha.

I actually put up our “Thankful Thanksgiving Tree” last weekend……yes, its fake, yes, its the earliest EVAH!!…and yes, why not??? I love the lights on at night and early in the morning (since I am usually up at 5:30 ish). Although, I will admit…I usually love the build up to events and then the day after the event I could pack it all up and put it away where as hubby still likes to have it around for weeks. ;-(

Erica

Amanda

A word of caution if you wear your ring on the treadmill, Janae. I used to wear mine on the TM, until the day I accidentally smacked my hand on the rail and knocked the center diamond out of my ring. !! I was panicked and thank goodness I found it – I don’t know how, but I did. My ring isn’t huge, nor is it “cheap,” so I was shocked…I must have hit it hard enough & in the right spot. Needless to say, I never wear my ring on the treadmill anymore.

My my first date with my now boyfriend was a neighborhood bar/restaurant near our places (Old Town Social for you guys that live in Chicago!). They have an awesome patio and we sat outside (with our dogs) and drank wine and ate sweet potato fries. We still go back there pretty frequently !

I say put up and take down your tree whenever you want!

Courtney

I always wear my wedding and engagement ring (I only take it off to put on lotion and then I immediately put it back on) and I don’t even notice it.
We put our Christmas tree up either Thanksgiving night or first thing the day after. My husband has already started putting the lights on the outside of the house because we are known as the Griswold’s in our subdivision. It takes him a month to put up all the lights BUT they don’t come on until the day after Thanksgiving at 8pm exactly and all our neighbors come over and watch and it’s a little block party to see what he has done every year.
We went on our first date to a Houston Astros baseball game! (I asked him out)

Stephanie C.

I very rarely work out with any jewelry on. I’m too afraid of losing it that way. When I take it off to clean or work out, it goes in it’s original box. I just feel safer that way.
I prefer to wait until the day after Thanksgiving to put up my tree, but my husband likes to do it the day of. Which I will never understand, but I’ve kind of accepted at this point. We’ve been married for 9 years and there are some things that just aren’t worth arguing over.
Our first date was a long walk along the Puget Sound in Washington State. We were both military at the time and it was so romantic. It’s also where he took me to propose not long after. Rushed courtship, but we’ve been together for almost ten years and married for over nine.

I found your blog and loved the couple posts that I read so much that I actually went back to the very beginning and read every single one. This is my new favorite blog and I’m so excited to have found you. You’ve been a huge inspiration for me over the last few weeks (as I’ve plowed through your blog posts for the last several years!). I’ve just gotten back into running and it’s scary. I’ve put on a lot of weight (I am starting at 190 @ 5’6″) and I have a permanent knee injury and a separate back/hip problem that I actually receive VA disability for. Seeing you struggle with weight (in an opposite manner), seeing you struggle through injuries and find what really worked for you has helped me so much.
I’ve been back to running for just over three weeks. I haven’t had my injuries flare up at all in that time, because I’ve been careful about working out properly, resting and fueling my body. Your blog has encouraged me in so many ways and I don’t think there are words that can really convey how much you’ve done. Thank you.

Stephanie. Your comment means so much to me! Thank you for sharing your first date story with me… we were all about the rushed courtship too:) Thank you so much for reading! I am truly so sorry about your knee, back and hip problems. That is so hard but I am happy to hear that you are back getting into running. WAY to go on the three weeks with no flare ups. That is so great! Thank you for taking the time to write me and PLEASE keep me updated with how you are doing!

After thanksgiving for the tree. Usually first week of December.
My first date with my boyfriend was at a coffee shop across from penn station in NYC. We met after work for just an hour. And apparently the zipper on my jeans was down! He told me about 6 months later he noticed but didn’t want to say anything. Lol.

Jenny

First of all I want to thank you for always keeping your blog so light and positive. I feel like we all really need that at this time!
We put the tree up during the weekend after Thanksgiving- best day of the whole year!!! And a real tree, always.

I take my ring off when I exercise. I also clean it at least once a week. :)
I like to put my tree up around thanksgiving.. sometimes before..sometimes after. We have always done a fake tree, but I just love the smell of a real tree.
My first date with my husband was to a nice restaurant in our small little college town. It was a special night.

Jessica

funny story – I almost lost my wedding rings on our honeymoon. I took them off in the rental car to put sunscreen on my face, laid them on my lap, totally forgot, and got out of the car. we had walked about 5 minutes from the car to the beach in Wailea and I realized OMG I LOST MY RINGS!!!!!!! I sprinted back to the parking lot- my heart was pounding so loud I couldn’t even hear. Thank God they were right there on the pavement beside the car. I would have been CRUSHED if I lost them!! So now I wear them ALL. THE. TIME. No exceptions.
PS- happy 4 month anniversary!

Jackie

It is actually standard time right now but the truth is any time change is hard. I wish we could just leave the clock alone.

I never take my rings off – I run with them and I lift with them. Of course, I don’t have a diamond so I am not really worried about catching it on anything.

We usually put up our outside lights in October/early November when the weather is nice and turn them on the week before Thanksgiving. Right now we have the hardest 1/2 of the lights on our house – the ones that my husband has to lean out over a 3-story drop to install. 2nd half will be installed this weekend and then we will turn then on. We often put up our Christmas tree the week before Thanksgiving too. My older daughter’s birthday is around Thanksgiving and she feels slighted but because we travel some over the holidays, we like having it up a little longer so that we can enjoy it.

We went roller blading for our first date. And were married 8 months later.

Cindy

Been married for almost 35 years and I never take my wedding ring off for ANYTHING. Never have.
Now that we have grandchildren, we put the tree up the weekend BEFORE Thanksgiving – when everyone comes home for Thanksgiving, the children get soo excited to see it up already. We have always had a fake tree – due to allergies, we cannot have a real one.
First date with my husband was to a Nebraska basketball game. I drank too much Amaretto and he had to take me home early. Thank God he gave me another chance – I’m still crazy about him – our first date was February, 1980!

Sarah W.

I’d like to start wearing my ring when I work out as it gets more difficult to put in on and off after 4 years of marriage (and a few pounds more – haha). Good to know that you wear it and it doesn’t bother you.

@Andrew: we put up our tree on the 23th of December! funny to read that in the US there is a totally different tradition

Elizabeth

Our first official date was to a gym to weight lift, then a church dance and then bennigans. We’ve never been back to bennigans.
I take my wedding ring off to weight lift when the grip is hard, but put it back on again right after. I also take it off when I use my hands to mix up meat.
We put our real Christmas tree up after Thanksgiving. The timing greatly varies on energy level and time available.

I don’t wear my rings around the house or working out. That started when I had kids because I didn’t want to scratch my babies with the jewelry and was always washing my hands (diaper changes) so the rings just got in the way. There are days/weekends when my husband and I won’t even wear our wedding rings – but we’ve been married for 24 years, so I’m pretty secure about it all :) :)
I am a very firm supporter of Thanksgiving at my house, so my family knows better than to put any Christmas music on, or decorations up early. After Thanksgiving – I’m loving every minute of the Christmas season!

Oh yeah, the tree goes up the day after Thanksgiving. It’s a huge family tradition, we get up and go tree hunting, hot chocolate, Christmas music at home, all the house deco goes up while chili or beef stew is in the crock pot. Oh yea, and cinnamon rolls that morning before the tree. BUT over the years, my husbands allergies have gotten horribly worse. So last year and this year, we are avoiding the real tree to see if it makes a difference. I won’t admit how saddened I am by this.
Nope, no ring while working out or working aggressively at something. I’ve had it for 17 years and it was so banged up over the years from wearing it so much, I just had a few prongs fixed and they buffed all the scratches out, it looks brand spankin new again….so I take it off a little more to be kinder to it. But it has one place only it goes at home. And I can’t wear it when I run, for some reason, my fingers swell up huge when I run in the summer. Weird.
Oh those negative thoughts get us. I was approached by a kidnapper in 3rd grade, but got a way by running. In high school, I was chased by a whackjob across town while leaving a football game, through a garden and alley before I broke through someone’s front door for safety, got away by running. In a huge city (I live in a small town) I was dangerously approached by a few men, but got away by running. So even though I live in a very safe small town now, my thoughts while running keep me from enjoying my run sometimes. But running is what has gotten me out of those situations….so I run…and try to only allow positive thoughts. Wow, that was a little too much information, huh. And like you said, what good does that do me thinking about the haunted past, NO good at all. Makes it worse.

OH Michele I am truly so sorry about what you went through at such a young age… I am so glad you got a way. Thank you so much for sharing and opening up to us. Running got you through so much and it still does.

The first date my boyfriend and I went on was to a little neighborhood just outside of downtown. They have all kinds of cool independent stores, coffee shops, and restaurants. One of the places we went into was a candy store and we each bought something. One of us got nerds, which I haven’t had since I was a kid. It ended up being a pretty fun first date.

We’ve always gotten a real tree and put it up either the Sunday of Thanksgiving weekend or the weekend after. Due to multiple strange circumstances this may be the year we get a fake tree and put it up before Thanksgiving. I’m with Andrew though, Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday!

I take my rings off for mud runs/obstacle course races because I’m afraid they’ll fall off in the goop.

My husband and my first date was way back in college! We went to a neighborhood bar that was more for the local adults than the college kids.

Libbie

I wear my ring while I run, but now when I do strength training. I don’t want the weights to rub or scratch.

My fiance and I didn’t have a true first date. We were really close friends first, and teenagers, so the first outing we had was actually a movie with his parents. An awful movie. It was one of the Transporters, and I had the flu. 8 years later and we have since had many more, better dates.

Rachael

So did you vote? Honestly, I can’t handle the tone of this post on a day like today. Women, get your heads out of the sand. There are more important things going on in life than sparkly rings and dinner dates. Dude, at least acknowledge what’s going on.

Hi Rachael! I have never nor will I ever discuss politics on my blog. My beliefs and love for my country run too deep to create another space on the internet for people to bash and hate each other for their own beliefs. Bashing is everywhere and it makes me sick. I hope to create a positive space where, yes, my focus is on food, running and family but that does not mean I do not hold strong opinions and feelings about the rest of my life. All I can control is my own home and the way I speak to others in real life or on the internet about my beliefs and others personal beliefs. Thanks for reading!

I love this perspective about “what good will it do?”. I have been struggling a bit through tapering for my 2nd marathon. My 1st marathon, my goal was simply to finish and this time I have bigger goals and it honestly freaks me out so I love this thought of what good will it do?! Thanks :)

I actually don’t wear my wedding ring while working out. It’s a hair big and I’m afraid it’ll come off; although, I have a wedding ring tattoo so there’s never any question about my marital status ;)

Our tree goes up the day after Thanksgiving too! We did a real tree for many many years and then 2 years in a row it fell over (got knocked over by a cat), the hubs wired it to the wall. Blah. Then we decided to do a fake one from Costco. It doesn’t smell nearly as good but it never falls over and it’s always beautiful!

Our first date was bowling a Jake’s Tex Mex, which is still one of our fav spots and if our both is available, we always sit there. We also had their amazing Texas sheet cake for our wedding 16 1/2 years ago!

Meg

I’ve followed your blog for over 5 years and it’s helped me stay positive when I’m facing huge challenges. Remaining positive and grateful is the only way to survive sometimes and what good does ‘worst case scenario’ thinking do anyway? Love this post.

Rachelle

My ring feels heavy when I get into racing mode so I wear just a plain band for that and put my wedding ring away in a place I can remember.
And YEP! I took a family heirloom ring out of the safe to give my husband to take the jeweler to put in another setting. It was going to be for our son to propose to his girlfriend (now wife). My last words to him were, PLEASE DON’T LOSE THIS-I’M SERIOUS. You know what happened right? My husband had to feed cattle before he left for town so it’s assumed that there’s a
1-carat Tiffany cut diamond somewhere on our property.

Rachel

I actually take my rings off all the time, but it’s because I have sensitive skin and if there is any moisture trapped underneath, I break out in an eczema rash. I learned that the hard way when we got engaged, because I never really wore rings before that :( I do have a bunch of little ring dishes all around the house though, so they’re always in a safe place.

Tree is always real, and always goes up the weekend before thanksgiving. I LOVE thanksgiving, but I also like enjoying the holiday spirit for as long as possible :) And since I’m not one to keep it up much past Christmas, I like to have it up a bit early.

Courtney

“My best races have always included myself being my own biggest cheerleader”. Reading this was an “aha” moment for me– I need to believe in myself more during races, because I’m really not all that bad:)

Elizabeth

I just got engaged, and so far (you know, over the past 4 days… ), I’ve only really taken the ring off to get it resized. And in the shower, because I have an irrational fear of it falling off/getting caught in my hair/getting irrevocably covered in shampoo.

My fiance and I had our first date at a park near where we live, which is also where he proposed. :)

I never decorate for Christmas until after Thanksgiving – I actually have Thanksgiving decorations out! My sister made a paper plate turkey when she was in kindergarten and my grandmother proudly displayed it for almost 40 years. I haven’t decorated much for Christmas the last few years because we have been gone more than we’ve been home.

Our first date was over 27 years ago…we were with a group at Lyon’s in Santa Maria (we met at a church function.) My future husband turned 26 at midnight and we sang to him while we were still at the table! We’ve had a LOT of dates since then :)

I don’t usually wear my rings when I’m working out – because my fingers swell and I hate it when they feel tight. But I also only leave them at home – so if I’m going to work out straight after work, I’ll keep them on.

We go with the fake Christmas tree because I always forget to water the real ones and they dry up. It goes up the day after Thanksgiving. Christmas if my favorite time of year!!

I wear my ring when I run but I do take it off to do strength training- I’m afraid of scratching it up with the dumbbells!
My first date with my fiancé was on November 1st of last year and we got coffee and went on a walk at the lake. He was hungover from Halloween and is a shy guy, so he probably said about 20 words the entire time while I nervously blathered on and on. Luckily we’re past that stage in our relationship!

Kate

As soon as I walk in the door, I take my wedding set off as well as all other jewelry. That keeps it sparkley and safe. I don’t wear it working out in part to keep it from getting lost or damaged but my fingers swell when I work out so wearing a ring becomes uncomfortable.

Claire

Definitely real tree. We put it up on about the second weekend of December. Christmas time in Australia is summer, so you can’t put a real tree up too early otherwise it turns brown by Christmas. We don’t do thanksgiving here so that date doesn’t mean much – shops start playing Christmas music and having decorations from September/October!!

P.s. you ARE FAST! And I would argue, faster than before. I believe that “fast” isn’t just about time: it is about who can get to the finish line in the most efficient way possible. It wasn’t efficient to run unhappy, end up with stress fractures, etc. I have read your blog for some time now and I would argue that you are not only more efficient than before (finishing happy, uninjured, etc) but also faster! That time you want…girl, you’re gonna pop here real soon (aka pr). Effocoent runners, over time, drop time faster than a hot tamale!

On a less serious note haha Mitch and I’s first date was to a Thai place. He never tried it and knew I liked it, so he took one for the team and chose the place. He ended up loving it!

Wow… Kaytlin, your comment means a lot to me! Thank you and I think you are right… being happy and uninjured is the necessary equation for great things to come. Thank you.
That is so sweet Mitch took you there even though he had never tried it (glad he loved it:)

The only time I run in my engagement ring is when I forget to take it off. Normally I don’t forget, but I consciously do not run it because it’s a little big (I am 20-25 lbs lighter than when I got married so my fingers are smaller) and not only is it distracting when it slips around but I’m afraid it will fall off and I wouldn’t notice. (I always keep my wedding band on, though.)

We always wait until after Thanksgiving to put up our tree. We’ve been married for fourteen years but it’s only been the past three years that we have used a real tree. (We moved into a house that’s literally twice as big as any of the other places we’ve lived, so we have room for a bigger tree but haven’t wanted to pay the price for a fake one!) Now it’s family tradition–usually the weekend after Thanksgiving we’ll go out to the local tree farm, pick a tree, and haul it home.

I’m not sure if you can call it a real date, but the first time my husband and I went out together was a complete accident–I happened to be at a mutual friend’s house with another friend of mine when Adam came by, and all four of us ended up going to the mall, out to eat, and to a movie. I guess you could say the rest was history because we’ve been an item ever since!

I do not wear my rings when I workout. I have dented other jewelry and want to take care of my most special pieces. Also, my fingers swell and it’s uncomfortable to wear them, especially on a long run!

I am happy not to read a political post today. I am thankful the election is over and am waiting for the negativity on all sides to ease. Nice to be in a place where it isn’t an issue. (and, yes, I also have strong beliefs and exercise my right to vote).

I honestly don’t remember our first date. I remember how we met but I don’t remember when he and I went out alone (without other friends) for the first time. hmm, I know he doesn’t either!

The tree and Christmas decorations always go up after Thanksgiving. Usually the first weekend in December I decorate the house the second weekend we do the tree. I love a real tree but the cat is a stinker. (the dog leaves the tree alone). We usually do an artificial tree and have some cut pine branches around for the scent.

My Christmas tree goes up December 1st…it’s a fake one though. And then it comes down Boxing Day….I just like getting my space back…although the room sure looks empty without it.
My boyfriend and I went to a glow in the dark mini putt course for our first date, with the winner treating the loser to a drink at Boston Pizza. The night went so well that we then chilled and watched an NHL game…I was so tired the next day. I still have the calendar that I wrote “Best Date Ever” in the space when it happened. LOL

Allyssa

Just curious, do you not have a wedding band? Do you only wear an engagement ring?

I don’t wear my rings when I’m working out (I don’t wear my diamond rings to work (RN) either. I have a plain gold band I wear). My setting is really high and I bang it on things or it pinches my fingers when I grab weights so I don’t wear them for workouts.

Connie

Hello!
I never comment and have been following you for about a year now! I wanted to comment on Andrew’s question because I also have very specifics about my Christmas decorating! ;) The day after Thanksgiving is when I get the whole house decorated for Christmas! Not before! And because I always have a real Christmas tree I put it up 2 weeks before Christmas that way it is still in good shape for New Year’s. Christmas is my favorite holiday! I especially like Santas so I have a lot of them around and a fake tree for every room in the house… even the bathroom! Haha!!
Enjoy the holidays!!

Loribeth

I don’t wear my ring running BC I feel it would fly off or get really gross with sweat or something. My husband and my first date was a picnic in the park where we talked and asked each other question s for hours and got sunburned! Great story! And we do the tree (fake one) the day after thanksgiving too! Thanksgiving always gets overlooked!

ChristineB

Living in Canada, the tree ALWAYS goes up after Thanksgiving, because Thanksgiving is in October and there’s no way my Christmas tree is going up before Halloween! However, I have seen Christmas trees up when ToT with the kids, so some people disagree with me!

Rachel Schlosser

I take my rings off before I work out. I am too afraid they will come off. We are a little odd in my house, we put up our tree around the 10th of November. My husband proposed to me while decorating his Christmas tree on the 10th so now its tradition. But we do not put up anything outside until after Thanksgiving.